VMware and Intel Team on Virtualization Technologies

VMware and Intel announced this week that the virtualization software vendor is customizing its mainstream products to work with the chipmaker’s upcoming “Vanderpool” chip-level virtualization technology.

In addition, the two companies said they are collaborating “deeply” over the long term on how to improve virtualization on Intel platforms.

Vanderpool, the codename for Intel’s efforts, has been dubbed VT for Virtualization Technology, and the chipmaker plans to release the first 64-bit desktop chips to take advantage of it this year. “Vanderpool enables an IT manager to partition a portion of a PC for maintenance and software upgrade operations that are transparent to the user,” according to a statement released by Intel. “Intel Virtualization Technology allows a system to better run multiple operating systems and applications in independent partitions, or containers.”

For its part, VMware will release versions of its two desktop products – VMware Workstation and ACE – this year, followed by updated server virtualization products in 2006.

“Sixty-four-bits is the last remaining bastion [for virtualization],” says Brian Byun, vice president of alliances at VMware. “A combination [of virtualization technologies] will result in better support for 64-bit workloads.”

The announcement came at the Spring 2005 Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco.

About the Author

Stuart J. Johnston has covered technology, especially Microsoft, since February 1988 for InfoWorld, Computerworld, Information Week, and PC World, as well as for Enterprise Developer, XML & Web Services, and .NET magazines.